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Glencore, the Swiss commodities group in which South African-born billionaire Ivan Glasenberg holds roughly a 10 per cent stake, has accused former trading partner Radiant World of sending falsified invoices to lenders, as the iron ore trader filed a S$2.5 billion ($2 billion) claim against it in Singapore.
The suit, lodged on 15 September by 11 Radiant World-linked entities across Singapore, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and Switzerland, targets three Glencore units. A first case conference is set for 21 October.
Glencore said on Tuesday it had ended all business with Radiant World and associated companies including Sapphire Minmetals, and directly alleged fraud for the first time, saying it had "confirmed evidence" that they sent falsified invoices, contracts and fabricated emails to financial institutions while claiming these came from Glencore staff. "These claims are meritless and we will contest them vigorously," Glencore said.
Glasenberg, who ran Glencore from 2002 until 2021, remains its largest individual shareholder with about 1.219 billion shares. He added to the position in April 2025, his first purchase in a decade.
Glencore has taken a $480 million provision on its Radiant World exposure — among the largest trading losses in its history as a listed company — and says it is reviewing its historic dealings with the group. Those losses are borne proportionally by every shareholder, Glasenberg included. He has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
Glencore was for years Radiant World's principal backer, helping it secure financing and acquiring warrants giving it the option of a minority stake. A letter from Radiant World's lawyers cited a November 2024 message from Peter Hill, Glencore's head of steelmaking raw materials, saying Glencore had "basically bankrolled your entire existence for the last few years."
Radiant World and Sapphire Minmetals contend Glencore's withdrawal breached contractual commitments and caused them enormous losses. Rakesh Sethi, Sapphire's chairman, confirmed the two were joining forces on the claim.
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